Q Poll: Linda McMahon, Chris Murphy take lead in 2012 U.S. Senate race

Staff reports

Updated 11:32 am, Friday, September 16, 2011

Photo: File Photo, ST

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Republican Linda McMahon, the former WWE chief executive and wife of wrestling promoter Vince McMahon, spent $50 million of her vast fortune on an unsuccessful bid for Senate in 2010. The former head of the state Republican Party says McMahon, a Greenwich resident, is gearing up for another Senate run in 2012. less

Republican Linda McMahon, the former WWE chief executive and wife of wrestling promoter Vince McMahon, spent $50 million of her vast fortune on an unsuccessful bid for Senate in 2010. The former head of the ... more

The poll also showed that McMahon trails both Democratic candidates, U.S. Rep. Chris Murphy, and former Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz in a general election race. Shays came out ahead of Bysiewicz, who was the first to enter the race.

The latest poll results also showed that President Barack Obama's approval rating has dropped to 48-48 percent, down from 53 percent to 44 percent in the last poll, conducted in June. It is the president's lowest grade ever in the state. But the polling also showed Obama would top Republican frontrunners Rick Perry and Mitt Romney in the 2012 election.

In the Republican Senate primary race, McMahon, formerly an executive with World Wrestling Entertainment, leads Shays by a margin of 50 to 35 percent. She leads 54 percent to 37 percent among Republican men and 47 percent to 32 percent among women.

In a potential general election matchup, Murphy, in his third term in Congress, tops McMahon by a margin of 49 percent to 38 percent. Murphy, one of the first to commit to the race, also came out ahead of Shays, 43 percent to 37 percent in the latest poll.

Murphy's Democratic opponent Bysiewicz leads McMahon by a margin of 46 percent to 38 percent, but trails Shays 42 percent to 40 percent. Shays, who was defeated by U.S. Rep. Jim Himes (D-4) in 2008, entered the race in late August after returning to Bridgeport from Maryland, where he had been living since his loss.

"While Connecticut has never had a woman United States Senator, there are two formidable women in the running as 2012 promises to be an interesting year on the statewide political scene," said Quinnipiac University Poll Director Douglas Schwartz. "In the Democratic primary, U.S. Rep. Chris Murphy leads former Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz by 10 points, but it is very early. There is a lot of room for movement because about a third of Democrats are undecided, reflecting the large percentages who don't have an opinion of either candidate."

Meanwhile, Schwartz said McMahon has an early advantage over Shays.

"In the Republican primary, Linda McMahon's name recognition advantage over former U.S. Rep. Chris Shays helps give her an early 15 point lead - before she turns on the vaunted McMahon money machine," Schwartz said. "McMahon is much better known than Shays, but she doesn't run as well in the general election. And not many voters have a good opinion of her."

The poll showed that voters have an unfavorable opinion of McMahon by a margin of 45 percent to 38 percent. Shays, meanwhile, was found to be favorable to 41 percent of voters, with 14 percent saying he is unfavorable and 44 percent saying they don't know enough about him to form an opinion.

Murphy was found to be favorable by a margin of 38 to 16 percent, while 45 percent don't know enough about him. Bysiewicz came out with more voters saying they favor her, 39 percent, but also more saying they don't like her, 27 percent. Thirty-three percent of voters polled said they don't know enough about Bysiewicz, whose failed Attorney General run and mishandling of the 2010 election are the last reminders for many of her political career.

Stamford's William Tong, a state representative, only received 1 percent of voters in the Democratic primary poll. Tong announced his intention to run for Senate in March.

The poll also questioned voters on President Barack Obama's approval rating. Voters were divided 48 percent to 48 percent.

"President Barack Obama getting only a 48 - 48 percent approval rating in blue Connecticut shows just how far the president has fallen. But despite the president's split approval rating, he still beats the leading Republican contenders," Schwartz said.

Obama leads Perry by a margin of 52 percent to 33 percent and Romney 49 to 36. Romney was the top choice for the Republican nomination, with 37 percent of voters polled picking him over Perry, at 19 percent, Michelle Bachman, at 8 percent, with no other candidate over 4 percent.

Voters approve, by a 51 to 40 percent margin, the job that Sen. Joe Lieberman (I) has done. In June, Lieberman's performance was disapproved by voters at a margin of 45-41.

Fellow Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D) increased his performance rating, with an approval margin of 60-23 percent, up from 54-25 in June.

The poll was conducted from Sept. 8-13. Live interviewers used land lines and cell phones to question 1,230 registered voters with a margin of error of plus or minus 2.8 percentage points. The polling included 332 Republicans with a margin of error of plus or minus 5.4 percentage points, and 447 Democrats, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.6 percentage points.